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About a week after Motorola committed to a Q2 rollout for the Jelly Bean (Android 4.1) update of the DROID Bionic, the company has begun sending out invites for members of their Motorola Feedback Network to participate in a soak test of the new software. The invites specifically say “Jelly Bean software release,” so there isn’t any guessing to be had here.

Hi,

Thanks for joining the Motorola Feedback Network. We are inviting owners of the Droid Bionic on Verizon to participate in an early preview of the new Jelly Bean software release, and provide feedback. If you are not currently using a Droid Bionic, please excuse and ignore this email.

The registration window for this soak could be extremely small — sorry about that. Please act now to take part.

Click this link — https://www.surveymonkey.com/ — to take the enrollment survey if you wish to take part. Note that you must be a member in good standing of the Motorola Owners’ Forums to be included. The registration window could close without notice so please respond as quickly as possible.

This is a confidential test under the terms of the Motorola Feedback Network. Do not post any details or information about this on any public sites.

Thanks. Although we expect to start soon, we ask for your patience if you register but don’t hear from us right away.

Matt
Motorola Owners’ Forums
Motorola Feedback Network

Typically, soak tests start within a couple of days after invites like these go out. Assuming the test software is bugfree and a success, Motorola and Verizon will announce the update and start pushing it out to everyone shortly thereafter.

This update for the Bionic is seemingly the last 4.1 update that I can think of for Motorola phones. We have already seen 4.1 arrive for the RAZR HD, original RAZR, and DROID 4 within the last couple of months. The Xyboards are likely still in play as tablets, but they also seem like the dirty stepchildren of the Moto family.

My Razr Maxx HD has been getting all the JB Love. Time for my Bionic to get the same love!

http://twitter.com/terry12s Terry Stoe

I have to see it to believe it!:)

Bionic

Your dickkk?

RoadsterHD1

LOL good one……

http://twitter.com/petekuhn peter kuhn

the burning question: will VZW ensure that NFL Mobile is included?

scastro87

Does Jelly Bean break PDANet+/ FoxFi Wifi? Looking forward to finally get JB on my Bionic, but that would kind of suck.

JoshGroff

Last I checked it did, but they may have updated it by now.

http://twitter.com/garagelogician Jeff C

It does break wifi, USB and bluetooth still work.

Apparently it can be made to work if you are rooted.

RoadsterHD1

Is the root process going to be the same as before? Using MotorolaOneClickRoot_psouza4.zip?

http://twitter.com/garagelogician Jeff C

No clue, I’m not up to speed on rooting (I have a company provided phone)

scastro87

Apparently Fox Fi/ PDA Net just updated the app so it supposedly works with Jelly Bean for the Raz/Maxx/HD, Droid 4/S3/VZW Galaxy Nexus/Note2

foxfiiiiiii

I was worried about the same thing…

David Rudometkin

Still a solid phone. The only thing that sucks about the hardware is the screen. I plan on keeping mine for another year or so as long as it keeps working flawlessly like it has been since the ics update. I would love a nexus 4, but t-mobile gets no reception at my job which is a deal breaker for me.

rodney11ride

Bottom line… even if T-Mobile had reception at your job.. its unreliable compared to big red and there is holes in coverage larger than New York… i dont understand why people would trade coverage and LTE for Shotty network.

Cheaper bill, only thing I can think of. I rather pay the price and get great coverage, than pay less for crappy coverage

Pedro

Cheaper bill and faster downloads where I live.
Houston now has LTE, and it’s faster than anything I ever saw on VZW.

Oh, and I have an extra $150 in my account every month.

Really, only downside is fewer Rewards Points on my Amex.

rodney11ride

well if your one that stays where he lives then your good

Jarred Sutherland

Because for real world usage, I hardly notice a difference. Depending on my work location I either have WiFi or WiFi and HSPA+ for 9 hours of the day, 5 days a week. When I drive, as long as I have voice service (or even slow EDGE for text/google talk) I don’t care because I don’t stream stuff. I would MUCH rather have $70 more in my pocket per month than the sometimes superior coverage of Verizon and a higher bill. I say sometimes because Verizon coverage maps are a complete joke and I frequently experience issues.

That, plus the fact I now have my number ported to Google Voice means I can get voice calls anywhere there is WiFi. Again, it all goes back to the fact that I don’t care what coverage I have on the road, I am not using my phone.

BTW, nice bike in the profile pic. CR(F)?

rodney11ride

question on the google voice… you ported your number. so any phone you get you install google voice at thats that… what about your actual number that comes with the phone? you ever use it? if you ever want to switch away from google voice can you port it back to a carrier?

ceejw

It’s best to think of Google Voice as a forwarding service with built in voicemail and SMS. When you port your number to Google voice it’s no longer associated with any phone and cannot ring a phone, it can only forward to phone numbers associated with a phone. So when you first setup Google voice you tell it to forward to the new number that comes with your phone (and any other number if you want it to ring multiple phones at once) You can port a google voice number back to a carrier number. It sounds like a somewhat complicated process though http://www.technologywoman.com/2012/04/20/how-to-port-a-number-out-of-google-voice-and-into-verizon-my-experience/

rodney11ride

2006 crf 250r love it!

MattInPDX

Agree completely. I didn’t have the hardware issues that it seems like a lot of people had. But in the end, the screen was killing me and I sold it off and picked up a Galaxy SIII.

http://www.facebook.com/curtn21 Curtis Neal

Just installed CM10.1 on mine last week and it almost feels like a new phone. It should hold me over until I can upgrade to the S4 in June.

rodney11ride

I cant help but think your on the wrong update cycle. instead of droid-droid x-galaxy Nexus/GS3/Maxx HD… your on the thunderbolt-bionic-GS4 cycle… hold on to that bionic a little longer than GS4 and see whats neXt

http://www.facebook.com/curtn21 Curtis Neal

I’ve been debating that but I doubt that verizon is going to carry the next nexus and I am not sure if I want to buy moto after the whole fiasco with Bionic, so I am not sure what that leaves me with.

http://twitter.com/Belatukadro Justtyn Hutcheson

If the Bionic is working and does what you want, then there’s no reason to settle for what’s available. I’m holding onto my RAZR until something comes out that is MUST HAVE, since this little guy is a tank and since the JB update flows like butta.

http://www.facebook.com/curtn21 Curtis Neal

My main issue was battery life. On a normal day with light use I was maybe making it 8 hours on ICS. It seems to be quite a bit better since I installed CM10.1 and it is a lot snappier now too. I’ve got until June first before I can upgrade anyways so I will see how it goes. If I am satisfied with how it is performing I may hold off, I just don’t see anything coming down the pipeline that can compete with the S4, hopefully I am wrong.

http://twitter.com/garagelogician Jeff C

I still get a kick out of how these “private” invites are made public so quickly. When I did the D4 soak, I read it here before I read the email.

You Bionic owners are in for a treat. My D4 has been a beast since the JB upgrade. Very stable, fast and smooth.

hkklife

Any improvements that you have noticed in real-world battery life?

http://twitter.com/garagelogician Jeff C

No improvements, maybe a very slight decrease if anything.

Silver Veloz

Kellan, could it be? Soon you will never have to mention The Bionic again (the phone with many lives). LOL

RoadsterHD1

YEAH, Finally!!!! the ste-child is up to the plate.

ozo012

So one of the other Verizon Bastard children gets an update, maybe my super-bastard phone the Rezound will get one too, although with HTC going downhill I can’t see it happening.

http://twitter.com/Belatukadro Justtyn Hutcheson

I’m one of the biggest optimists here, but I struggle to see anything else happening for the Rezound. HTC is doing everything they can to stay afloat, and with the ONE out, I believe their 2012 devices are being left behind, let alone 2011.

Waaaaah! My Bionic has been traumatized by gravity storms and is barely limping to the release date of the S4.

Justin Winker

aww Super depressed. Didn’t get the e-mail even though I’m in the MFN and have a Bionic registered. Oh well, not my daily driver ATM.

mgamerz

Only a year after JB came out pretty much.

Justin Winker

Remember, though, that this phone just got ICS last fall, and they’ve had to update their other devices as well.

mgamerz

I know. I had an atrix. Pretty much nothing moto does at this point changes how much I don’t like them. But it’s good to see the bionic got JB ,even though it was well behind their other phones (like the razr)

Justin Winker

Yeah. My experience hasn’t been bad with Moto – I love their build quality and radios (never had a problem with any of my Moto’s, save water damage courtesy a snow bank). I truly enjoyed my Bionic, and only got a Nexus 4 because I could get out of a $90/month payment to VZW.

gchahinian

Definitely excited for this…saw the email not too long ago and i’m pumped we finally get an OFFICIAL JB build. My contract isn’t up until May 13th, so im sticking it out with my bionic as long as i can

RoadsterHD1

The BIONIC is a GREAT phone and will do the job until the XPhone or next QUAD-CORE 2gig phone from Moto comes out. I love MOTO’s hardware

Kronos281011

Best News of The day

KittySnuggles

Judging by how Verizon has treated this phone, we will probably get pushed Gingerbread instead.

RoadsterHD1

LOL

http://profiles.google.com/jtsurf18 Jason Downing

I wonder how long the 10 users that install this update will use it before they buy another phone.

In all seriousness, that phone came out in September of 2011. I’d be interested in knowing the statistics on how many people upgrade their phone at the 2 year mark (or even early upgrades). I’m sure there are people that will be able to take advantage of this upgrade and are grateful for it.

http://www.elliottblufer.com Elliott Blufer

I’m still on the phone, but am likely switching when the S4 comes out unless Motorola announces something great sooner or this update is really good.

http://profiles.google.com/jtsurf18 Jason Downing

Ya. It just seems like this is so close to people’s 2 yr anniversary for their phone. Granted not EVERYONE bought it when if first came out, but still. All those hours probably could have gone into something more productive.

Hell, they can release a new phone and let people upgrade at a discount… idk if Verizon would approve. You’d definitely have to renew a contract

RoadsterHD1

Funny thing is that only a small number of people actually had a lot of issues, some only a few and tons with no issues at all. I only started dropping data 2 months before ICS came along and no problems at all after that. The people with issue really did make their voices heard cause the phone cost 300.00 dollar. The ones with little to no issues stayed relatively silent. Reason Bionic is getting ICS or JB is because it has a large community. Bigger than most might think.

http://profiles.google.com/jtsurf18 Jason Downing

Well good then haha. I’m sure they’re all be happy

scastro87

Yup, same, but don’t want to lose my unlimited data.

http://www.elliottblufer.com Elliott Blufer

Neither do I. I’m upgrading at full price.

ERIC REED

Or get a dummy line and pay 10 bucks a month extra. Now you can always use that upgrade or transfer your upgrade to that line and keep your unlimited data! Works for me and my family.

http://profiles.google.com/zkolev Zack Kolev

How is it that these soak tests never catch major issues like the Gnex crazy battery drain from last month’s update and the HTC Thunderbolt’s ramdom reboot issue after its first Verizon update?

Justin Winker

The GNex doesn’t have soak tests since the updates go through Google, and I don’t know how HTC’s update process works.. Moto’s is usually about a week or so long, and the people that are in it are required to provide positive/negative feedback on the update.

trd105

If Verizon doesnt do soak tests for the GNex then why does it take them so long to push out updates?

Justin Winker

They run in-house tests on the software, I would assume. There isn’t a way to sign up for “soak tests” through VZW’s website, though, so it’s probably all done in-house.

trd105

OK. I just assumed that soak test meant testing on their network (which they can do in house), not necessarily having people outside of the company test it.

Justin Winker

Ah. I think of soak tests similarly, though Moto uses customers who are actively involved and willing to participate (they send it out to thousands of people vs. the 10-20 VZW staff that VZW uses to test new software in-house).

Aaron

Soak tests really aren’t meant to test the software for bugs. It’s more to test out the download and installation process of the update.

RoadsterHD1

Really?

Aaron

Pretty much, just making sure it installs correctly and not bricking people’s phones.

http://twitter.com/Belatukadro Justtyn Hutcheson

For the most part. They do keep a close eye out for bugs that they didn’t find though, since they obviously can’t test every combination of apps and settings on every device, some of which may indeed cause major issues.

http://www.facebook.com/djamATL Derrick James

Wow Motorola is REALLY getting these updates out quick! Can’t wait to go back to Moto when i retire my Nexus for an X-Phone :)))))

First to name the reference wins the “Obscure Movie Reference Of The Day” award!

ManBearPig618

Open your eyes

anon

Look up to the sky and see…

http://twitter.com/Belatukadro Justtyn Hutcheson

Look up to the skies and seeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

LordVierge

Look up to the skies and see.

I’m Just a poor boy, I need no sympathy.

alex.barry92

still never got the ics update to work.. it just stops installing a third of the way through..

Warwick

Install it straight from the SD card. Thats what happened on my brothers Bionic.

RoadsterHD1

Yeah but it will take him off the OTA path and won’t get the OTA official JB

will bartlett

how? especially if he uses the ota zip…

RoadsterHD1

Because that’s what i did and I had to go back to gingerbread from ICS zip and get back on the path and get the OTA official ICS. Trust me it takes you off the path.

will bartlett

but then why does it work for every other phone in the history of mankind?

RoadsterHD1

Let’s make sure we are on the same page. If the ICS leak is installed on a non-rooted phone thru recovery, it will be OFF the oTA path. You will need to SBF back to an earlier OS then to the current OS OTA to get back on the path. In this case if you install ICS leak from gingerbread, you will need to go back to SBF-gingerbread to get OTA ICS to then get JB OTA.

will bartlett

well if they do the official ota zip they shouldnt have a problem…

RoadsterHD1

wrong. If you use recovery and install the zip you will be off the path.

http://twitter.com/Belatukadro Justtyn Hutcheson

The upgrade path is determined by the software version numbers, and nothing else. What you are talking about are some of the ICS leaks that were pulled from test servers, most of which will indeed strand you outside of the update path, though not permanently. If you use the official OTA update .zip (to version 6.7.246.XT875.Verizon.en.US), the you will remain on the official update path.

All of that said, if you can’t get the update to install on a fully stock never-been-rooted device, call Motorola and they can walk you through it. Their customer service reps are very helpful in my personal experience, but then again I rarely have bad customer service anywhere, so maybe I’m just lucky like that.

RoadsterHD1

I guess if you get the latest version of ICS you may remain on the path. The leaks are not the latest so they will take you off the path. So yes you are right in that respect. I don’t know if that latest ICS is on the net or not. Maybe… Thanks for you input, much appreciated.

http://twitter.com/Belatukadro Justtyn Hutcheson

Anytime. And be careful, the latest leaks were actually *newer* than the official version, but not necessarily better. The .246 build was chosen as the most stable, hence it went out as the OTA. The OTA update file can be found here:http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1949199. Don’t be scared by the number on the .zip file name, Motorola always names their updates by the version number the update is being applied to, not the final update version number.

well yeahhhh on a custom recovery but if you stock recovery you should be fine. i updated my brother’s razr multiple times that way.

RoadsterHD1

bottom line if his phone won’t get or finish installing ICS, Something is Wrong….

chris125

Because they didn’t lock their phones down like moto does

will bartlett

but i did it on a razr. your argument is invalid.

http://twitter.com/Belatukadro Justtyn Hutcheson

You installed a leak initially, not the final update. If you had installed the OTA update, you would have bricked your phone attempting to go back to gingerbread, as the kernel is completely different and with the locked bootloader it can’t be downgraded.

Well at this point I think that Motorola will start to focus on phone releases now that all of their current phones run one of the latest operating systems.

http://twitter.com/Belatukadro Justtyn Hutcheson

They still have to get 4.2 on their 2013 lineup yet. Though at the rate they are going, there’s a possibility that they are timing those updates to coincide with the release of their next device.

Diablo81588

Yeah buddy.

trill

Rollin like a big shot, chevy tuned up like a nascar pitstop

Good_Ole_Pinocchio

*clap….clap ….. clap.*…… You guys have had a TOUGH Fight! ….

RoadsterHD1

YES we Have.

Spencer

So happy to finally hear this. Even though the phone will still suck even with JB.

anon

Have you owned a Bionic? What an asinine comment. It’s a great phone with ICS, why wouldn’t Jelly Bean make it better?

The Droid Bionic is basically a RAZR with a removable battery. Same CPU, same overall specs. The real issue was the software support, which is much better now than it was.

http://www.facebook.com/scott.capodice Scott Capodice

I have owned the phone and it’s a 300 dollar alarm clock now. Battery life sucks even with the extended battery. It’s slow. It’s bulky. It was a waste of money…I’m so glad I jumped on the S3 for preorder last year. His comment was in no way asinine. Only thing I do like about the phone is the docks. Wish sammy would come up with some good docks…

Anon

I get nearly two days off the extended battery. I guess I don’t mind the bulk because I have big hands. Never had speed issues (admittedly, I do use Nova Launcher, so perhaps that helps). I’ve not had issues with mine, and I’ve had it for a year and a half. I’m sure the S3 would be faster –it’s a one-year newer phone with a faster CPU, so that doesn’t surprise me, but again, the Bionic has the same hardware as the Droid RAZR so many people really like.

You and I will disagree on the “asinine” part. It came off as knee-jerk, rather than discussing the phone in any way. I don’t mind people panning the Bionic if it doesn’t come off as a one-liner, and if they truly owned it.

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100002266972762 John Holmes

Sounds like you have no idea how to use the Bionic. Learn your device

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